Eschaton Incarnate
by Team Miriku
Summary: Ambushed on their way back to Konoha, Sakura and Ino are taken captive by Kabuto and an Akatsuki member they thought was long dead and buried. Rated for violence, disturbing imagery and language.
1. Chapter I

**A/N: **Rated for violence, disturbing imagery and Hidan's mouth. Discretion is advised if you are sensitive to those sorts of things. Ino/Hidan/Sakura/Shikamaru-centric, falls under the categories Suspense/Drama/Horror/Adventure. Or maybe I'll just change it to general, who knows. Rating may go up later.

Story is set after chapter 489 of the manga and episode 243 of the anime, or near the beginning of the "Confining the Jinchuriki" arc (Tsunade has woken up from her coma, Naruto has left for the Land of Lightning, Kabuto is off adjusting to his new form without Madara around and Sasuke is recovering from surgery). After that, it diverges from canon/goes AU.

I've revised/rearranged the story a bit since it was initially posted, so. Anyway! Please enjoy!

* * *

**Eschaton Incarnate**

_(n) "day at the end of time following Armageddon when God will decree the fates of all  
individual humans according to the good and evil of their earthly lives"  
(adj) "possessing bodily form"_

* * *

**Chapter I. **

* * *

Dissection. Asphyxiation. Evisceration.

He imagines Shikamaru standing there —just as he was when the world ignited, when the ground shifted and blocked out the light forever—staring down with cold hard eyes and flicking his dead sensei's lighter on.  
Hidan has tried moving his head with his teeth and tongue but nothing works; there's dirt everywhere, burning his eyes and tasting like ash in his mouth. Eventually even those sensations fade into nothing, and all he hears are the faint but unmistakable bird calls that reassure him that yes, he's still alive, not in hell, if only he could be. Sometimes he can even feel pressure; maybe he's hallucinating that too, the faint rumble of the earth as something alive and free trots across the ground above him.  
_  
Goddamn stupid deer.  
_  
Eventually—very, very soon, he tells himself— he would figure out how to claw his way through, if only he could move his hands. Is it strange, that he feels the dirt underneath his fingernails and worms sliding across the skin of his hands, but is entirely unable to move them? _Can I even really feel them, or is my mind playing tricks on me again?_

Massacre. Slaughter. Starvation.

Hidan decides that even though he loves blood and his fondest fantasies involve ripping Shikamaru's head clean off, just like that bastard leaf nin did to him, he wasn't going to shove a pike clean through his body and let him bleed to death or even mount him on a cross with stakes through his arms (he saw that once in one of Jashin's sacred texts and even tried something similar with the two-tails, but it was slow and boring and there wasn't nearly enough gore to interest him at the time). No, he was going to find him, lock him in the smallest cell he could get his hands on, and watch him slowly starve to death. He'd give him water, of course, so that he'd last longer, just like Hidan was lasting—_why, Jashin, can't I die of dehydration too? It'd be over quickly—_and savor every moment Shikamaru experienced a loss of bodily function. Maybe he'd eat outside the door and let the aromas sift through the cracks just to taunt him. Maybe he'd even give him a little food, sometimes—table scraps, pig slop—just to watch the bastard gulp it down greedily (_what a big, bad genius konoha shinobi you are now, where's all your pride gone to?_) and maybe he'd mix it in with a generous amount of dirt, so Shikamaru would know what it tasted like to have the ground shoved into his face.

_If_. If he was even still alive. Would Jashin take revenge from him too? Had Kakuzu slaughtered them all and left Hidan to rot in the ground in the end? _He threatened to kill me enough. Thought he was just jokin', man. We were only kidding around. Kakuzu liked me, right? He was my partner. Best Akatsuki around...  
_  
Fucking prick. No one could beat Kakuzu. That bastard. _After I'm done with Shikamaru, I'm coming after you, Kakuzu, you heathen. No hard feelings. I won't kill you, after all... we'll just play around a bit.  
_  
A loud _thunk, _and Hidan tensed, driven out of his reverie. More deer walking around?  
_  
Must have been one fat doe.  
_  
Doe. Deer. Venison. Pork. Spare Ribs.

Oh Jashin, I'm so fucking hungry.

There was a louder thunk, this time followed by the sound of dirt shifting.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

The sounds seemed to be getting closer. Hidan felt the pressure of movement—or maybe he couldn't—and the presence of... someone's chakra?  
_  
'Jashin_?' Hidan thought wildly, '_Have you come to save me at last? I didn't peg you for that kind of god, in the end. In fact...'_

Thunk. Thunk.  
_  
'Jashin, you know, I've said some things, you've done some things_—_like left me to starve to death in a fucking hole, not that anyone is keeping track_—_but even though I may have forsaken you a few dozen times in the last couple of months, I-'  
_  
The earth bulged in front of his eyes and Hidan's world was bathed in tiny rays of light. After so long in the dark, it burned, really burned, but it was a beautiful kind of pain and he would have laughed his old maniacal laugh if his mouth wasn't still filled with dirt.

* * *

"Finally! As much as I appreciate the chance to get a nice tan, I think I've had enough of the sun. No offense, Temari," Ino grinned impishly.

"Hmph."

They were striding through the sand village at an even pace, passing an array of matching cracked stucco buildings with colors so drab and muted that Sakura couldn't help but be thankful to have been born surrounded by shades of green. Even the path beneath her feet was dust colored, and if she squinted hard enough everything looked the same.

"This wasn't a vacation, Ino," Shikamaru responded after a moment. "This is probably going to be the first of many trips. I'm not looking forward to it."

"_More _chances to tan, then?" Ino winked.

"It's a pain in the ass."

The group reached the gates exiting the village, situated at the edge of the valley. Beyond them, Sakura could see miles and miles of soft sand dunes and the sun only a few inches away from the horizon. It was far too early and Sakura's throat parched up just from looking at the desert. She stopped walking and glanced back behind her at the closest merchant stand, longingly wondering if it was too late to grab a quick drink. It was a bit early to be diving into their traveling supplies, after all...

"I know, I know. It's not like we're at war yet, though... Things've been pretty quiet, yeah? Especially with Naruto gone."

A little girl on the cusp of puberty—a genin, it looked like, judging from her hitai-ate—brushed past her. Out of breath and gasping for air, the girl cried out, "Hey, don't leave me behind!"

She was waving her arms frantically as she ran, trying to get the attention of a boy some ways ahead of her. He glanced back at her for a brief moment before continuing on without giving the girl a chance to catch up.

It all seemed so poignantly familiar to her.  
_  
Don't worry, kiddo. At least he probably won't try to kill you when he grows up._

"Sakura."

"Huh?" The dazed look in her eyes vanished and Sakura's vision focused on the face that was now blocking her view. It was Shikamaru, and he looked annoyed. Or maybe that was his default expression—she couldn't really tell anymore.

Temari came up from behind him, a customary look of disapproval gracing her features. "You've been spacing out a lot, Sakura. A ninja should always be aware of her surroundings." She pursed her lips and added, "If you aren't careful, you're going to turn into Shikamaru, and then we'd all be in trouble. Konoha certainly doesn't need another one of him."

"I don't space out," Shikamaru scoffed. "I just like to take life slowly. You gotta enjoy the simple things..." he started to walk off at that, huffing and muttering under his breath about how she was just like his mother.

Temari followed after him and rolled her eyes at the comment, but the beginnings of a smile could be seen forming on the corner of her mouth and Shikamaru was wearing a similar expression.

Next to her, Ino appeared almost as annoyed as Shikamaru had earlier, and Sakura could bet it had something to do with the tanned Suna shinobi leading them out of the village.

Ino had grabbed onto one of the two escorts accompanying Temari, hooking arms with him and cooing about how she was going to miss Suna. When it became clear that nobody was paying attention to her little display, Ino dropped the facade entirely. Sakura couldn't decide if she was annoyed with Ino for forgetting Sasuke so easily, or jealous that her friend was capable of moving on and forming healthier attachments—even if they did seem to be one-sided.

Maybe she was reading it all wrong, though. Maybe Ino was really just a mother hen and didn't like the idea of her teammates gallivanting around with shinobi from another village. Sakura had tried to get her friend to spill the beans at one point, and Ino had just shrugged her off, saying something about how the late Asuma-sensei asked her to watch out for the two boys because they didn't have a sensible bone in their bodies—especially Shikamaru. Sakura didn't pry any further. Understanding the delicate intricacies and complications of relationships was never her forte.

_And God only knows that experience hasn't helped me there._

After saying their goodbyes to Temari, the three of them traveled swiftly, mostly in silence, with Ino occasionally trying to initiate conversation and Shikamaru leading the way. Sakura was uncharacteristically quiet, and Ino's attempts to goad her into conversation were surprisingly futile, given her temper. Sakura had hoped that volunteering to accompany Team Ten to Suna would alleviate the loneliness, but it hadn't done much for her mood. Team Ten was Team Ten, and even though Chouji was away, their bond was as strong as ever and served only to remind her of what she had lost.

"So, Shikamaru... You looked like you were enjoying yourself," Ino broke the silence, a knowing look on her face.

Shikamaru's eyes narrowed. "What are you going on about now?"

"Nothing, nothing..." Ino said dismissively. "It won't be so bad, visiting Suna more often," she changed tactics. "Temari looked happy to see you."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Shikamaru glared halfheartedly and sprinted ahead of her, but Ino caught the hint of a blush on his face and her mood turned sour.

At least, it turned sour for a few minutes.

"Sa-ku-ra," Ino sung out tauntingly.

_Attention span of a rat_, Sakura thought, irritated. _She and Naruto should just get together and have a bunch of blonde, hyperactive babies. Can't she see I'm not in the mood to talk? What happened to all those ninja lessons on reading body language?  
_  
"Sakura._ Sakura!"_

Sakura wasn't responding.

"Hey forehead."

She sighed. "What, pig?"

"Stop ignoring me," Ino commanded.

"I'm not-"

"It's very childish."

Sakura chose not to respond; at least, until a rock hit her in the back of the head.

"What was that for?!" She screeched, not noticing Shikamaru flinch at the sound.

"Your angsting is slowing us down," Ino informed her. "And it also seems to be taking a toll on your reflexes."

Sakura glared. "In case you failed to notice, _I'm _in front of _you_."

"Only because I slowed down for you." The blonde sped up and kept pace next to her, feigning a compassionate look. "I didn't want you to feel inferior."

"Believe me, pig, the day I feel inferior to you is the day hell freezes over."

"We all know I'm the better ninja here, forehead."

"I'd tell Lee I'm hopelessly in love with him before I'd _ever_ lose to you. In _anything._"

"Children! Settle down." Shikamaru yelled from over his shoulder. "Jeez, how old are you guys now? I swear I'm never having kids if they act like you. Especially girls..."

Ino and Sakura cackled, their lighthearted banter forgotten.

"You know, Sakura," Ino commented after a few moments, "It's nice having you around. You're still my best friend, even if you were an ungrateful brat," Ino smirked. "So stop looking so sad!"

Sakura smiled—the first sincere one she'd given since Naruto had left.

_Maybe I'm not as alone as I thought._

* * *

**A/N:** I'm dropping the Japanese suffixes since it's too troublesome.


	2. Chapter II

**A/N: **This section is low on dialogue, but there's substantially more by the next chapter.  
Still not sure if this story should be rated T or M. I guess I'll find out in the next few updates.  
Cheers!

**Chapter II.**

* * *

12 Hours Later

* * *

Most of the nightmares Sakura had over the years were vague. Apart from the occasional dream where she was in her underwear at the academy, with everyone laughing and Sasuke wearing an especially disgusted expression on his face, her dreams tended to involve her friends dying. After Team Seven's supposed "C-class" mission featuring her first brush with death, Sakura dreamt that Sasuke had never woken up after his fight with Haku. She catapulted herself towards his body, sure that he was still alive, only to find him cold, limbs locked in rigor mortis. Her dream-self had panicked and shook him frantically, screaming when his arm ripped out of his socket from the force of her pull.

The very worst nightmare she had, though, was the night she returned to Konoha after seeing Sasuke for the first time in over two and a half years. Sakura dreamt that she was in her room, in bed, only partially asleep and listening to the soothing lull of her breath. She was lying on her side—the only light in the room came from the crack beneath her door, and it was too dark to see anything clearly. Through the heavy silence, she could feel something behind her, instinctively sensing a malevolent presence. Terrifying, sinister, and watching her. She was almost too frightened to turn around, but she managed to take a few quiet, shallow breaths to work up the courage to face it only to discover that she couldn't move.

The presence behind her did not move either, and yet the room felt increasingly suffocating. The scant amount of light she could see dimmed with each passing second until shadow consumed the room entirely. Her heart-rate skyrocketed. Her breaths became gasps, and just as the terror and panic consuming her bordered on hysteria, Sakura's eyes snapped open. She bolted upright in her bed, let out a frantic scream and twisted her body to the side, but when she looked there was nothing there and her bedroom was no longer shrouded in darkness.

It took her nearly an hour with the lights on to calm herself out of her inconsolable state, and much longer for her to return to sleep.

Now, when she opened her eyes and gazed up at the paint-chipped ceiling with only the sound of her shallow breaths echoing in her ears to distract her from the darkness, Sakura was struck with the irrational feeling that she was yet again trapped in that dream, and that there was something standing in the darkness, watching her.

Sakura immediately jerked her arms back in an attempt to sit up. Panic swelled in her chest when she couldn't move—just like in her dream, just like that night—only to realize that she wasn't paralyzed, but rather strapped down onto an operating table.

It occurred to her, then, that she must have been captured alive. Her brow furrowed as she tried to remember what had happened, but Sakura's head throbbed painfully and the details eluded her. She remembered leaving Suna with Shikamaru and Ino, returning to Konoha after a brief diplomatic meeting with the Kazekage. With Naruto gone—having left for the Land of Lightning several weeks earlier—and Kakashi acting increasingly distant, Sakura was poignantly reminded of another time when she had been left alone to deal with the aftermath of her team's dissolution. And when Ino mentioned that Choji was away on a mission and that Team Ten needed a fill-in for their trip to Suna, Sakura had jumped at the offer.

The only other image she could recall was Kabuto, surrounded by figures in blood red robes...

Sakura shut her eyes tightly and tried to will her fear away. Rationally, she knew that she had to stay calm. The rapid beating of her heart and the tightness in her throat told her that this was easier said than done.

In a world where powerful hidden villages ruled and neighboring countries were constantly at odds, being captured should not have come as a surprise to her. Shinobi were often taken alive as hostages. For information. For ransom. For other purposes that she didn't want to contemplate.

_Shishou will come for me_, she told herself, and she wouldn't give whoever these bastards were a damned thing. She'd be strong and proud and prove that she was no longer the weak link of Team Seven —or whatever was left of it these days. She was the Godaime's apprentice, friends with the nine-tailed jinchuriki, and somewhere in Sakura's gut she was certain that Shikomaru, at least, had escaped. He was too damned smart to get captured, even by Kabuto.

Kabuto.

Sakura tilted her head and examined her surroundings more thoroughly. It was not as dark as she had first thought. There was a dim, flickering light above her head, pointed away from her—the kind of operating lamp used to focus light on certain parts of a patient during surgery. To her left she saw an anesthesia machine. The tubes were stretched towards her, and a connected breathing mask was lying on the operating table, a scant few inches from her neck. There was a stainless steel table stationed next to the machine, strangely devoid of any surgical tools. Directly in front of the operating table was a door, and in the corner, an unassuming washing station. The operating room was tiny, cramped and quite windowless.

_Oh, god, Kabuto.  
_  
Was this to be her fate, then? To be picked apart, tortured, experimented on? Nothing was sacred to _that _man—not even his own body. The thought of Kabuto filled her with a vague sense of betrayal leftover from the chunin exams and a slowly simmering anger. He was part of the reason Sasuke had been irrevocably taken from them.

Rage bubbled up to the front of her mind, and she let it consume her. Rage was good. Rage would block out her panic and fear of being at the mercy of Kabuto. It would drive away the guilt and shame burning inside her at the thought of being weak enough to be taken alive.

Sakura let out a growl and strained her arms against the straps of the operating table. When they did not budge, she channeled chakra into her forearms and tried again. She could not contain her squeal of delight when she felt the straps snap and the tension dissipate.

_No chakra bind? Are you kidding me? This can't be right._

After removing the straps binding her legs, Sakura sat up on the table but did not move. _Maybe they forgot you were a shinobi_? Her inner voice snickered. _You obviously didn't put up much of a fight earlier, to end up here. It'd be an understandable mistake._

_No_, _that's ridiculous_, she chided herself. Just because her chakra wasn't bound didn't mean she was safe, or that they had underestimated her. She hadn't even tried stepping onto the ground yet, let alone opening the door. For all she knew, there was a pressurized trap set to go off, or the door was bolted shut and utterly inescapable. At least, it would be for someone who wasn't gifted with perfect chakra control and Tsunade's ridiculous strength.

_Kabuto failed the chunin exams repeatedly just to collect information on leaf shinobi. For fun.  
Okay, perhaps fun was a bit of an overstatement, but there's no way he wouldn't know I was the Hokage's apprentice. It's absurd._

Sakura inhaled sharply and silently hopped off of the table. It didn't matter. There was no way she was just going to sit there and wait for Kabuto to come for her.

She tentatively moved towards the door, reaching it in only a few paces. Sakura lifted a hand and flinched as flesh met cold steel, twisting the handle to the right. It was unlocked. She let go of the breath she was holding and pushed. The door opened half an inch before stopping abruptly. Padlocked, of course. What kind of an operating room has a padlock on it?

_One where the patients aren't meant to come out_, her inner voice answered.

Sakura bit her lip, unsure of what to do next. She only had two options: wait for someone to come for her, or use her chakra enhanced strength to bust open the door. Of course, her captors would undoubtedly hear her and come barreling in anyway if she did that. Perhaps if she were to lie back on the table, reposition the straps and even out her breathing, she could get the jump on them?

_Yeah, sure_, her inner voice retorted. _And when is that going to happen? In an hour? In twenty? What if there's more than one person who shows up?_

She paused for a fraction of a second before whispering, "To hell with it," under her breath. Steeling herself, Sakura carefully channeled a small amount of chakra—she'd increase it gradually; it'd be mortifying if the door flew off and crashed into a wall from her over-exuberance—and pushed.

The door wheezed, but did not budge.

Allowing a bit more chakra to seep into her hands, Sakura was taken by surprise when the padlock popped out of the wall with a sharp, horrifyingly loud _clink_. The creak of metal echoed and seemed magnified in contrast to the utter silence that greeted her from outside of the exam room.

Sakura stood in front of the open door. Eyes wide and body paralyzed. _Somebody heard that. It would have been impossible not to hear.  
_  
Frozen, Sakura couldn't decide if she should shut the door and scramble back to the table and pretend that she hadn't been trying to escape, or if she should make a run for it. This time, it took her only a second to snap out of it. Sakura bolted out the door as quickly and as quietly as she could manage.

She was in a long, narrow hallway that stretched both directions. A series of doors littered the hall, each adornedwith a small glass observation panel. The ceiling was high, and most of the industrial lights lining it were out of service. The scattered few that were in working condition flickered half-heartedly, and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

_It's like I've walked straight into an abandoned haunted mansion_. Sakura shivered. _Come to think of it, that would be the sort of place Kabuto'd set up shop. _

After looking down both directions of the hallway, Sakura decided to go right. As she passed one of the doors she tried peering through the observation panel, but it was too dark to make out anything tangible.

The end of the hallway turned into yet another hallway. She made a left this time, and after a series of doors the hall opened up into what appeared to be a spacious waiting room, with additional hallways connected.

The bulbs in the reception area were completely out, but the residual light from the hallway allowed her make out a few couches and sitting chairs in one corner and a large reception desk at the other end. Dust was freely floating through the air, and lightly covered everything.

Strange, she hadn't notice any dust in the operating room.

Sakura tentatively walked over to the desk, looking for any clue that might indicate where she was being held, but it was completely empty. She belatedly realized that there were no windows and wondered if perhaps the compound was located underground.

_An underground hospital? Office? Abandoned mental ward-turned-experimental-laboratory? _Sakura sighed. _Now what?_

What choice did she have but to keep going?  
_  
This is ridiculous. I can't just run through here, like some rat trapped in a maze._

It was then that Sakura noticed her hands were shaking. She let out a small chuckle. _Pathetic, Sakura_. She veered over to the waiting area and took a seat on one of the couches, ignoring the way the dust sifted up as moved.

She needed a plan. She wasn't going to get anywhere by aimlessly wandering around. With her luck, she'd run smack dab into Kabuto and next time she wouldn't break free so easily—if there even was a next time. Looking around, she realized her best bet would be to hide herself in one of the rooms and wait for someone—hopefully not Kabuto or any decent shinobi—to pass by. It could work... unless they were coming to check on her and noticed she was missing. Unless they had already realized she was gone. Unless they had heard the horribly loud crack as the padlock broke earlier.

_No, I can't think like that._

She could do it. She'd wait for one of her captors, and follow them through the maze and to freedom. Nobody would notice her absence until it was too late. She'd make a mad dash back to Konoha—or Suna, whichever was closer, once she figured out where she was. She'd get home just as the retrieval team was leaving to come rescue her and surprise them all, and Shikamaru would be so relieved because missions like these were such a drag, and Ino-

Ino.

It came back to her abruptly, all at once.

The medical scalpels sailing through the air, passing a scant few inches above her head.  
Soft, soothing white feathers drifting down in a careless dance. Ino falling to the ground, dead asleep, instantly surrounded by men in foreboding maroon cloaks. The look on Shikamaru's face as he saw Hidan step out from behind Kabuto, grinning and brandishing his scythe—the scythe that should have been safely guarded in Nara forest. Her own vision darkening as she was knocked unconscious by Kabuto, her body overloaded with chakra from his mystical palm technique.

Sakura stood up. She couldn't afford to waste time now.

With the memory of her capture intact, she was left with more questions than answers, but at least one thing was clear to her. Somewhere, down one of the twisting hallways, in one of those many rooms, Ino was likely locked away, shackled to a table and without the strength to break free.

_Don't worry, Ino. I won't leave this place without you, _Sakura promised.


	3. Chapter III

**Chapter III. **

* * *

_Now what_? Sakura's inner voice whispered impatiently. _You can't sit here forever._

As much as she wanted to find Ino immediately, Sakura had no idea where to start. The compound was bloated with twisted hallways and a myriad of doors. The rooms were padlocked shut, she didn't have any keys, and the longer she sat around, the more likely her escape attempt was to end in disaster.

_Maybe I should just focus on escaping. I'd be able to lead a rescue team back to this spot. It'd be quick. And Ino would be okay until then..._

She didn't sound very convincing, even to herself.  
_  
And you don't even know if Ino's really even here. She might be-  
_  
No. Ino was definitely there somewhere. Sakura couldn't wrap her head around the idea that she was the only prisoner kept alive. Ino had been captured before her, and if she wasn't here somewhere, then she must be...

But that'd be ridiculous.

Sakura was halfway through convincing herself to search for an exit when she heard a pair of voices whispering through one of the hallways.

She rose from the couch, muscles tensed. Down the hall, she could hear footsteps coming closer with each second that passed.

Glancing around wildly, her eyes locked on the receptionist's desk situated in the corner, and she silently darted towards it. She dropped to her knees and crawled under it, willing herself to breath quietly.

The front of the desk was solid and low to the ground, and although she was hidden, Sakura was thankful that it was dark. In retrospect, if someone _were _to find her, she would have nowhere to run. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that.

The voices became louder and clearer and Sakura could see through the bottom of the desk that the intruders had entered the waiting room. Squinting, she made out two pairs of feet, both hidden under dark red robes. The pair continued to the center of the room, and then stopped. Their conversation stopped abruptly, too.

They took a few more steps towards her, and then away, at an angle, until she could no longer see the edges of their robes. She heard the telltale sound of clothing shifting, and relief flooded her system as the two began conversing again. The pair continued down through the connecting hallway, and judging from the sound of their footsteps, not the hallway she had entered from earlier.

When the footsteps began to fade, Sakura let out a shaky sigh. It took a few minutes before she felt safe enough to risk coming out of her hiding spot. When she finally crawled out from under the desk and turned to stand up, she was shocked to see herself face to face with two bright, snake-like eyes.

"Hello," Kabuto smiled.

Sakura gasped and scrambled to stand up, her back pressed against the wall. Trapped in a corner. A man she did not recognize—decked in a now familiar blood red robe—was standing behind him, looking serene.

She snapped her neck to look towards the hallway. The sound of footsteps was still echoing off of the walls, getting fainter and fainter.

Shadow clones. Sakura cursed her stupidity. _But how did they know where I was..?  
_  
"We can see your footprints, dear," Kabuto said, noticing the look on her face.

The man behind him tutted. "It _is _awfully dusty in here."

"Yes, I've been meaning to take care of that," Kabuto shrugged. "Oh well. This is an emergency spot, anyway. I doubt I'll bother coming back here once we're finished."

"What do you want with me?" She barked out.

"Come. I'll show you." He held out a hand towards her.

"No! Don't touch me!"

She focused a substantial amount of chakra into her hand.

"Calm down, Sakura."

She made a fist.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

She lunged for Kabuto, and was puzzled when he made no move to dodge. Her confusion dissipated when her fist connected with his shoulder—instead of ripping him apart, as she had imagined and fervently anticipated, he only grunted a bit and stepped back, as if he had received a regular blow. Sakura felt an overwhelming surge of chakra rush through her. It blinded her and sucked the air out of her lungs, as if she had been physically struck, and as consciousness left her, she knew that she wouldn't be escaping again.

* * *

Sakura came around much more slowly the second time she woke up. The sound of a door creaking open, followed by the harsh crack as it was forced shut had jarred her into the living world once more. She was woozy and disoriented. Her head was leaning to the right, and when she opened her eyes, her vision was too blurry to see anything at first. She had the most awful headache—Sakura had never had a migraine before, but based on descriptions from patients, this was what one probably felt like.

Moaning softly, she tried moving her hand to rub her forehead, but she didn't get very far before the chains subduing her became taut. The manacles around her wrist clinked dully as she dropped her arm back down.

_Another operating table and a new set of chains. Great._

When her vision finally cleared, the first thing she saw was the silhouette of a figure in a robe. A hood was covering his head, and it fell over his face, obscuring him from view. The room was dark —_just like the rest of this godforsaken place_—and the only light in the room was coming from an assortment of odd looking candles. At first glance they seemed to be flames floating in thin air, and Sakura was transfixed until she noticed the almost translucent candles holding the flickering lights in place.

"Ughn...?" Sakura tried asking the man in front of her, but got no response.  
_  
I was going for something a little more coherent, anyway._

Looking more carefully, she realized that he was not the only person in the room. There were others on either side of the figure in front of her. They were standing around her in a circle, completely motionless save for their hands moving methodically and slowly, repeating a sequence of hand seals. Dog. Dragon. Bird. Tiger. Ox. Hare. Dog. Tiger. The signs went on and on, rhythmically, without hesitation. She lost track of the signs and was curious to know how long they had been doing this. Over and over, they repeated a flurry of symbols, all perfectly in sync and using only a miniscule amount of chakra.

Something wet and warm dripped onto her cheek, and Sakura turned her head to look at the ceiling. Painted above her was a symbol: a large circle with an equilateral triangle in the center, one peak pointed towards her feet.

_I've seen that symbol before, somewhere... but where?  
_  
A metallic tang filled her nostrils and she absently wondered whose blood they had used to draw it.

Strange, though, the circle was off-center.

Sakura turned her head to the left. Looking past the operating table with Ino lying next to her, she could see the outline of a matching circle painted onto the floor, perfectly in line with the one on the ceiling.

Wait. Ino?

"Ino!" Sakura whispered, eyes widening. She tried stretching her arm out towards her. The tables were close and the chains were loose enough that if they both were to reach their arms towards each other, their hands would overlap.

"Ino," Sakura tried again, but the girl remained unconscious.

_Found you_. _Well, this isn't quite how I pictured it going...  
_  
"Who are you?" She tried asking the figures again, her voice cracked and whispery. "What do you want from us?"

Still no response. The hooded figures continued on with their hand sign mantra.

Sakura gave up, frustrated and momentarily defeated. Looking past the circle, she noticed several candles attached to the walls—enough for her to see that this room was quite larger than the one she had woken up in, but not substantially so. Near the entrance to the room, she noticed three or four surgical tables lined up in the corner, as if someone had shoved them away, too lazy to remove them from the room entirely. Just like the room she had woken up in, there was a washing station in the back corner. Her eyes focused on the figure leaning casually against the wall.

Hidan.

She immediately realized where she had seen that symbol before.

_Of course. Jashin._

What was that religion about? She tried to remember when Ino and Shikamaru had mentioned it, during their grieving period following the death of Asuma: something about a religion of destruction and death, ritualistic sacrifice, and a god that demanded blood in exchange for luck and in Hidan's case, immortality...

_Oh, God, this is definitely not an interrogation. It's an experiment, or a sacrifice, or... or..._

She almost wished they'd just ask her for information.

_I'd probably be good at bluffing... probably._

For some inexplicable reason, Sakura could not seem to take her eyes off of Hidan. The sight of him was enough to make her blood boil—enough to bring back the anger and drive the fear away, if only for a little bit. Curiosity and wariness drowned the anger out, though, and she observed him silently. He was dressed in the same maroon robes as the others and his white hair was still slicked back, although it was longer than she remembered. His arms were crossed and he looked irritated and bored, as if he didn't want to be there. Sakura considered calling out to him, but she remembered his insane blood lust and wisely decided that she did not want his attention on her.

The door opened, and Kabuto entered the room.

Hidan immediately perked up. "It's about fuckin' time. We've been here for hours."

Sakura missed Kabuto's response because at that moment, Ino started moaning.

"Ino?" Sakura whispered fervently, trying to remain quiet enough to avoid attracting attention—although at this point, it was wishful thinking.

"Ino!"

Her friend's eyelashes fluttered but did not open.

"This is such bullshit." The sound of Hidan's loud, indignant voice caught Sakura's ear, and she tilted her head towards them, listening intently.

"I don't know what you're complaining about. I got you the damn book, didn't I?" Hidan continued. "The _only _copy. All I wanted in return was that shadow nin from leaf, and you couldn't even fucking get that right. This whole thing is a goddamn waste of time." He scowled. "Hell, I don't even need to be here anymore."

Finished ranting, Hidan re-folded his arms and leaned back against the wall again, glaring at a spot on the floor.

"Petulance is unbecoming, Hidan."

Hidan waited for Kabuto to say something more, but the ever faithful subordinate of Orochimaru remained silent and shifted his view over to the two girls in the middle of the makeshift altar.

"When are we gonna start this shit already?" Hidan huffed. "Not that I care. The sacrifice is already ruined, if you ask me."

"Nobody did."

"What?" Hidan looked confused.

"Nobody asked you."

"Tch. Whatever."

"Calm yourself, Hidan. You want... what was his name? Shikamaru?" Kabuto smirked lightly. "Just be patient. After we're done here, capturing him will be ridiculously easy. The leaf nin will come to us. He's probably gathering a search party as we speak."

Hidan grunted and mumbled something, seeming slightly mollified.

"Besides," Kabuto continued, "The blonde one was a teammate and close friend of the boy who defeated you. She was with the group that killed Kakuzu. Is that not a worthy offering?"

To Sakura, Hidan still looked like his feathers were ruffled, but he otherwise returned to his previous state of boredom and impatience.

"It's still taking too damned long. And I _still _don't get why you're doing this. You don't give two fucks about Jashin. I mean, I know why they need you-"

"I enjoy experimental procedures," the medic-nin interrupted.

Hidan stared. "Right." He blinked, evidently unsure of how to respond. "I'm fuckin' hungry."

"You're always hungry." Kabuto looked thoughtful. "We will get something to eat after we're finished here. Speaking of which..."

Kabuto pulled the hood over his head, blending in almost perfectly with the figures surrounding the altar. "I believe the preparations are almost complete. We can begin soon. Are you going to take part, Hidan, or will you continue to stand there and sulk?"

Hidan twitched, and Sakura could hear him muttering a few choice curses.

"What was that?" Kabuto pressed.

"I'm here, aren't I?" Hidan finally responded. "Isn't that good enough?"

"You'll have to ask Jashin that, not me."

The ex-Akatsuki looked at him skeptically for a moment before rolling his eyes. He appeared nervous as he resumed his brooding, Sakura noted, as she watched him tap his foot and rub his arm anxiously.

"Sakura?" Ino called out, and Sakura immediately snapped her head towards her waking friend.

The amount of relief she felt knowing that she was no longer alone in this was overwhelming. Sakura reached her hand out to grasp Ino's over the operating table. "You're awake!"

"Thank you, thank you..." Ino was attempting to curl into herself on the table, but the chains prevented her from completing the action. She seemed to be whispering to herself. "I thought I was alone. I _hoped _I was alone. Where were you?"

"In another room," Sakura answered, voice low. "I don't know where... It was smaller than this. I tried to get out, but..." She peered at Ino, noticing her clothing for the first time. "What are you wearing?"

Ino was dressed in a long, silken black robe, her hair fanning out underneath her head. "I don't know. I woke up a while ago. These guys—" her eyes darted towards the robed figures—"got here a few hours ago. I must have passed out again."

Ino shifted uncomfortably and continued, "I can smell these weird oils on me, and... I'm pretty sure they bathed me while I was unconscious. I-I don't think I have anything on underneath this robe."

She could tell Ino was trying to remain professional and confident, but the shakiness in her voice gave her away. Frankly, Sakura didn't know what should worry her more: the fact that Ino was bathed and robed, or the fact that she herself wasn't.

In front of them, the circle opened to make way for Kabuto, who stood centered in front of the two tables—right above the southern point of the triangle inside the symbol of Jashin on the ceiling. Sakura writhed against her chains, a cold sweat breaking out across her skin as she realized that she could barely access her chakra.

"What did you do to me?" She choked out. "Why couldn't I hit you earlier?"

Kabuto ignored her and reached into his robe, retrieving a small silver dagger. The figures began chanting in a language Sakura didn't recognize, first softly and then loudly, and she could almost swear that her heart began beating in tune with them.

Ino squeezed her hand, and Sakura almost squealed in surprise.

"Sakura. It's going to be okay," Ino whispered. "They'll get us out of here. Just don't worry," she was repeating the mantra over and over, her thumb making light, soothing circles over the back of Sakura's hand. "They're gonna come for us, so just calm down."

Sakura's breathing became a little less shallow, her heart rate a little less frantic as waves of gratitude and affection washed over her. She remembered being a little girl, alone and bullied as Ino stood up for her—like some sort of grade-school savior. Her first real friend. On some level, Sakura regretted exchanging their close friendship for a heated rivalry. She hadn't seen it as throwing away their friendship so much as upgrading it: Sakura had been trying to assert herself as an equal, trying to let Ino know that she didn't need to be looked after anymore. She wasn't weak. She couldn't afford to be weak, as a ninja. Even now, Sakura resented that after coming so far, it was still Ino who was trying to protect her, regardless of the fact that Sakura had surpassed her in terms of skill.

As Ino squeezed her hand again, Sakura couldn't find it in herself to remain jealous. "I'm sorry, Ino. I tried to get us out."

"Shhh. It's okay. It'll be okay."

The candles dimmed as the chanting grew louder, and Sakura watched numbly as light flickered and gleamed off of the edge of Kabuto's knife.

"Everything's going to be okay."

Her head throbbed—a blinding stab of pain rushed through her skull. The last image she saw as everything faded to black yet again was a familiar pair of glowing, serpentine eyes.

* * *

**A/N:** Thank you for reading, and thank you for following the story. Hopefully everyone is... more or less in character. :)


	4. Chapter IV

**A/N: **Hello! Oh,** warning: some horror/depictions of bloody-stuffs. **Listened to Crackernut [Nutcracker Remix] by Matthew Pablo while writing. Pretty awesome song.

* * *

**Chapter IV.**

* * *

The operating room was completely silent.

Sakura peered up at pitch-black surrounding her and slowly sat up from the table. Her shackles were off and the room was freezing. Her eyes gradually adjusted to what little light was available, and her breath fogged out in puffs from the coldness in the air.

She called out, "Hello?" but only the absence of sound greeted her.

The stillness of the room spooked her, and she scrambled off of the table. When her feet clumsily made contact with the floor, she slipped on something wet and sticky.

Her knees buckled and hit the ground, elbows cracking painfully against the tiles. She was leaning into the floor, panting softly, and her were arms covered in a warm, coppery syrup that she recognized as blood.

Sakura stifled a scream, and took several large gasps of air to calm herself.

"Ino?" she called out. Careful to not slip again, she rose and looked back towards the two surgical tables. Sakura still couldn't make much out, but she hesitantly reached out blindly and felt the two surfaces. Ino was not there.

_Where is everyone? Where's Ino? Why is there blood on the floor?  
_  
Of course, no one was there to answer her questions.

When she moved to walk out of the room, after only a few tentative steps she nearly tripped over something soft and heavy—someone's body.

Her medical training immediately kicked into gear. Sakura leaned down and methodically felt the body, grasping for the arms. She clenched the heavy material covering their limbs and identified it as one of the heavy maroon cloaks the figures had been dressed in. Working her way up the body, she attempted to feel her way up to the neck to check for a pulse. Sakura didn't get far, though; the man's head was no longer attached to his neck. Her fingers slid through soft, coagulating flesh before meeting air.

Gagging, she turned away from the corpse.

_I think it's time to just get the hell out of here_. _Safety first, ask questions later._

Without a moment's hesitation, Sakura rose and scurried towards the front of the room where the door was, mindful of the other darkened lumps littering the floor. As she reached out to grasp the handle of the door, she heard the faintest sound of something scratching against the tiles.

She was not alone.

Sakura froze. "Hello?"

The scratching stopped. Sakura hurriedly opened the door and let out a relieved sigh at the sight of the faint hall lights. She turned around, finally able to _see_, and took in the scene before her. Bodies, yes, she expected those, but...

Sakura looked into the corner of the room—where the scratching noises had originated—and screamed.

* * *

Hidan was kneeling, his knees grinding into solid rock, and he was clutching his head with one hand and the gaping wound in his stomach with the other.

The exact events of the past two hours were a mesh of scrambled, chaotic recollections that Hidan didn't particularly feel like sorting through. He had watched the situation unfold, detached, from his corner by the sinks; he recalled observing with some amount of suspicion as Kabuto retreated from the room only moments before hell had been unleashed.

At least, Hidan assumed something hellish had entered the room, based on the screaming.  
He hadn't actually _seen _anything. Images of his fellow cultists being torn to shreds, their eyes and mouths wide with shock and confusion, were permanently branded into his skull. Hidan was no stranger to death. Hell, he felt quite at home in the face of a massacre. But this...  
_  
It's just because I didn't know what the hell was happening, that's all, _Hidan told himself. _It's no fun when there's no fight to it._

Not being able to see what was attacking you was just downright creepy, he decided. It was clear that no one else had been able to see it, either.

Except for her. And speaking of which...

"For the love of all that is unholy, can you _please_shut the fuck up?"

The figure, currently huddling on the other side of the cave, made no move to respond. Her face was buried into her legs and her hands were clamped tightly over her ears, in a vain attempt to block out the world. Her black silken robe was littered with barely discernible blood spatters, and her hair was broken out of its usual ponytail, leaving the long blonde strands in complete disarray.

Hidan absently scratched the wound on his abdomen and followed the gash up to the deep claw marks trailing up his chest. They curved up his shoulder, leaving giant chunks of flesh missing as the scratches gouged down. It was a good thing he was immortal, otherwise he might have been worried. The other Jashinists had not been so lucky.

_Sucks to be them_.

He thought about asking to be healed—not that it hurt (_of course not), _just so that it wouldn't scar—but Ino couldn't bear to look at him. Hidan glanced over his shoulder once more and snorted. As if she'd be capable of doing anything that didn't involve sitting in a corner and sobbing.

What the hell had he even been thinking, dragging her here?

The answer seemed obvious enough: he _hadn't _been thinking. In retrospect, not thinking seemed to be the cause of all of his problems. Survival instincts had taken over—something he had little experience in handling since his introduction to immortality. The only thoughts in his head at the time went something along the lines of: _get the fuck out of here, get the fuck out of here_, and _get the ever loving _fuck _out of here!_

He hadn't even realized he was carrying the dead weight of a nearly catatonic woman until he had already landed at the entrance to the cave leading to an Akatsuki safe house.

And he was seriously regretting that momentary lapse in judgment.  
**  
**The cave itself was rather unimpressive: it was about twenty feet wide at the longest point, but went deep into the side of the hill and had an impressively high ceiling. The inner portion of the cave was rocky. Near the mouth was the remnants of a fire pit, and a few feet from that were several rolled up sleeping mats. Deeper into the cavern, the ceilings became increasingly lower until the entire room narrowed down into a tight tunnel, at the end of which was the door to the safe house.

_Maybe I should sacrifice her, _Hidan mused to himself as he continued to observe Ino.

After a moment, he shook his head in response to his thoughts. _No. I don't think that's an option anymore_. _And besides... can't kill her any time soon now, can I?  
_  
Not until he knew what the hell was going on, anyway. Somehow he doubted torture would be an effective means of getting her to talk. At this rate, it'd probably just make her even more hysterical. And maybe even drive her completely insane to boot.

_Oh, who am I kidding? She's already there. I'm officially out of ideas.  
_  
Hidan cleared his throat in an effort to get her attention. It didn't work.

"So..." he started, "You're lookin' a little worse for wear. Probably wondering where we are..."

Ino's head was now turned slightly, as if cocking her ears. He was pretty sure she was listening, but it had been awhile since she had responded to anything he did, so he couldn't be too sure.

* * *

He was half right. Ino heard him speaking, but Hidan's voice flowed right through her and she was only really catching half of what he said.

Ino glanced down at the black silken robe clinging to her figure, noticing it damp and dark with blood. Stupid robe. Stupid weird cultists, with their stupid bathing rituals and stupid oil fetishes.  
_  
I guess I'm never getting my clothes back, _she thought regretfully. _That shirt was new..._

"Unless you wanna take your chances lookin' for her and possibly get your head sliced off in the process—not that I'd blame you, that can be fun every once in awhile—we should probably lie low. No tellin' what's gonna happen now. Fuck if I know..." Hidan continued speaking, and Ino studied her robe more closely.  
_  
I wonder if this is going to stain, _she became lost in thought; she remembered being back in Konoha, the day she purchased that shirt. How she had dragged Sakura and Choji along with her to go shopping. Tenten was off on a mission, and Hinata, well.. They didn't see much of her. They had tried to drag Shikamaru, but one deadpan look from him killed that thought. Not that she had any problem manhandling him, but he had been sitting there with a stupid cigarette in his mouth and an open shogi board in front of him—clearly waiting for someone that wasn't her—looking so damn put out that she didn't have the heart to haul him along.

"His hair is stupid, anyway," Ino murmured.

Hidan stared at her. "What?"

Ino continued muttering something under her breath that he didn't catch, and Hidan realized that she had completely interrupted him and obviously hadn't been listening to anything he was saying. Not that he cared about that last part.

"Sasuke's was much prettier."

Hidan groaned in frustration and proceeded to bang his head against the wall of the cavern.

"He doesn't even light them, you know, he just chews on 'em like it's a makeshift senbon and he's some idiot trying to do his best Gemna impression."

Hidan continued to let her talk, weaving a disjointed tale about people and places he didn't recognize. He knew that if he wanted her side of the story, he had to give her some time to recover, but patience was far from his forte and irritation was fast approaching his limit.

_Maybe I should have stayed, _he wondered. _This chick wasn't the only person with answers, after all..._

But there was screaming and blood and people twisting in ways he'd never seen; he could picture the faces as they were mutilated and confused because there was nothing there, nothing to attack in defense —except that wasn't entirely true, was it? There had been something there, because Ino had been strapped to that table, staring in open horror with wide eyes and screaming, "Demon! Demon!" and now Hidan just _had to know_. Had she seen Jashin? What did she mean, demon? Jashin was supposed to be a _god_.

_It doesn't make sense, _he thought to himself. _Why would Jashin do that? He grants immortality to those that worship him, he doesn't massacre them. (_Well. With a little help from some questionable and generally lethal religious experiments.)_ Death is meant for the heathens, the infidels, the human cattle up for slaughter and sacrifice. _**  
**  
Hidan still couldn't quite wrap his mind around the fact that everyone, all those Jashinists, were dead. And he would have been too if not for his experimental immortality.

After awhile, Ino's chattering died down, and she appeared to become a little more composed, as if silently contemplating something.

_Here goes nothing.  
_  
"So... how're you feeling?" Hidan muttered, glancing at her warily.

She snapped to attention and clenched her jaw, immediately suspicious. "Why did you bring me here? Where are we, where is this place?" her questions were firing off rapidly, without giving him a chance to respond. "What do you want with me? Haven't you done enough?" Ino's voice tapered off brokenly, and he fought the urge to roll his eyes.

"Where are we?" she repeated once more, after he failed to respond.

"An old Akatsuki safe house, pretty close to Ōzora. You know, small town near the border-"

"I know where it is," she snapped. "And this isn't a safe house. It's a cave."

Hidan's eye twitched. "There's a tunnel in the back with a door that leads to the actual house, bitch."

"My name is Ino."

"Whatever."

"Why are we out here then?"

"Let's make a deal. You answer one of my questions, and I'll answer one of yours."

Ino was silent.

"Tell me what you saw back there, after the ritual."

She broke eye contact and looked at the floor. "That isn't a question," she deflected.

Hidan pinched the bridge of his nose, willing himself to not explode. No, too late. That was the end of his rope.

"I've had just about enough of this whole fucking day," he spat out, rising from his seated position and making his way towards her. "What the fuck did you see? What did this to me?"

Hidan ripped his bloodstained cloak open, exposing more fully the raw, jagged hole in his flayed stomach and the lacerations crawling up his shoulders.

Upon seeing Hidan's injuries—an undeniably grisly reminder of the slaughter she had so recently witnessed—Ino squealed, snapped her eyes shut and whispered to herself as she resumed rocking back and forth.

Hidan let out a slew of curses as he kicked the side of the cave in frustration. He counted backwards from ten, and exhaled slowly. Months in isolation had done little to teach him patience, but he had at least learned how to bring himself back from over the edge.

"Fine. Fine. Just go to sleep. We'll talk some more in the morning," He gestured towards one of the mats. "Place's hidden by a genjutsu, so don't worry about intruders."

Hidan moved back to his spot near the fire pit, leaned against the back wall and closed his eyes.

Ino regarded him carefully through half-closed lashes for a good ten minutes. When she was sure that he wasn't going to move or try to talk to her again, she moved from her corner and crawled towards one of the sleeping rolls. After what felt like forever—but was probably only a half hour at most—she fell into a fitful rest.

* * *

Ino jolted awake, an incredibly vivid recollection of the past night tearing her from slumber. She was sweating profusely, and momentarily panicked when she couldn't recognize where she was.  
_  
The cave. Hidan. Wait, Hidan?_

She remembered then, but it seemed crazy nonetheless. Had she woken up in some bizarro land? Maybe she was still dreaming.

Ino turned towards her side and looked out through the opening of the cave. The moonlight was bright enough to illuminate everything slightly, but all she could really see was a mesh of dense foliage. No. This was no dream. **  
**_  
I want to go home_.

But she was essentially alone, in the dead of night, with no weapons and only a thin robe to protect her from the elements. She had no clear idea of where she was or if anyone was even looking for her. What could she do?

Resigned, Ino attempted to return to sleep for a few minutes, but her body wasn't having any of it. She opened her eyes once more and idly glanced back towards the forest. Her eyes caught sight of a dark patch from behind one of the trees in the distance.

Ino stilled, her breath caught in her throat.  
_  
What the_...?

The shadowy image didn't move. She thought for a moment that maybe it was just a figment of her imagination, and again attempted to will herself back to unconsciousness.

She opened her eyes for the second time. The blurred shape closer now, only partially obscurred by a tree. She swore she hadn't heard anything move.

It was the silhouette of figure. Short, shorter than she had been when she was still at the Academy, with elongated arms and claw-like fingers that stretched past its mid-calf.

She wanted to shout, "Who's there?" but her voice would not cooperate, and she shut her eyes again instead.

This time, she heard a light rustling, followed by a rush of air. The room stilled, and Ino held her breath, eyes still squeezed shut.

When she felt the lightest puffs of warm, moist air caressing her neck, Ino screamed.

Hidan tensed up immediately, his back aching awkwardly from the less than comfortable sleeping position he had settled into. The fire was out, and Ino was sitting upright on her sleeping mat, shaking uncontrollably and crying softly to herself.

There was nothing else in the cave.

"What is it now?" he asked irritably, and Ino pointed towards the mouth of the cavern but did not speak.

"What kind of damn ninja are you? You see somethin' in the dark and you start _crying_? Shouldn't you throw a fucking kunai or something?"

But she only shuddered at this, and seemed to fall deeper into herself. "It's followed me here..." she was whispering. "From that room, that night..."

That caught Hidan's interest. "What followed you?"

When he got no response yet again, he let out an exasperated sigh, muttered, "Fuck this shit," and left the cave.

Ino's head snapped up and she watched him leave in shock.  
_  
Where's he going?_

"Hidan?"  
_  
Is he really going to leave me here, with...? _she glanced around, but the creature was gone. Was it even there to begin with? Was she really going crazy?

_Relax, Ino. Just relax. Let's look at the facts one more time. You're alone, in a cave, near Ōzora, in River Country, right near the border. You don't have any weapons or supplies, but there's supposedly a safe house connected to the cavern. All you have to do is stock up, head back to Konoha—it isn't that far—and you'll be home. You can report back that..._

Well, she'd worry about that part later.

Ino rose, but her legs were shaky and she couldn't figure out if it was more daunting to head back through the darkness of the cavern, or to go into the forest. Before she could come to a decision, Hidan had reappeared at the cave's entrance. She felt a small amount of relief at the sight of him, and that alone was enough to horrify her all over again.

He was dangling a set of keys from one of his hands.

"I was going to dig this up in the morning, but since you can't seem to shut the fuck up, I guess we're going in now," he explained.

He brushed past her, traveling through the twisting tunnel in the deep end of the cavern, and Ino followed him into the darkness.

* * *

**A/N: **I'm contemplating revising this section, but we'll see. I end up revising everything at least a few times, anyway... I get to be my own beta! It's fun! Speaking of fun, I had quite a bit of that when devising the next few sections, but I'm itching to get back to Konoha. Oh well—in due time.


	5. Chapter V

**A/N: **Thank you for the reviews. They were nice! :)****

Chapter V. 

* * *

As Hidan flipped the light switch, Ino halted.

The entryway led directly into the foyer. Two love seats and a small coffee table were sitting in front of them and behind those, the makeshift living area expanded into a combined kitchen and dining room. The whole set-up was compact, and the low ceilings only worsened Ino's feelings of claustrophobia upon entering. Directly to the left of the front door was a long hallway that appeared to snake to the right, around the main living area, and Hidan had turned to walk through it. There were three doors positioned on the left-hand side, and further down the narrow hallway were a set of stairs that appeared to lead down—to a basement, perhaps?

Hidan stopped walking when he reached the second door.

"Bedroom," He gestured towards the first room. "Bathroom, then another bedroom—" he motioned towards the stairs then, "—and some other room I don't care about. So pick a room and go to sleep. We have shit to discuss tomorrow."

Ino just stood there and stared at him, occasionally eyeing the first door warily until Hidan grunted in annoyance.

"Well, what're you waiting for, princess? Need me to open the door for you?"

Ino looked affronted at that, and stood up a little straighter. "I'm not a princess," she snarled. "I'm a ninja."

"Sorry, highness. Your constant bitching and moaning must have mixed me up," Hidan raised an eyebrow. "But seriously, do you need me to tuck you in? I don't think we have any nightlights, but I can check."

Ino was glaring fiercely, and she seemed to be infinitely less frightened with each passing word.

"We can share rooms too, if you want," Hidan continued, his mocking tone becoming more exaggerated, "I can protect you from those mean, nasty shadows."

"Just leave me the hell alone! I don't want you anywhere near me!" Ino shouted, and proceeded to stomp towards the first room. She grabbed the handle, opened the door with as much force as she could muster, and slammed it shut behind her, completely missing the smug grin on Hidan's face.

* * *

There were no windows in the underground room, so Ino had no idea what time it was when she woke up. Sleep had done little to ease the exhaustion she felt, although she supposed that could be chalked up to lying in bed wide-awake for the most of the night.

The bedroom was militant and bare. Aside from two sets of bunk beds and a dresser, it was empty, save for a door connecting to the bathroom. For a moment, Ino pictured Hidan and Kazuku sharing a bunk bed and whispering quietly late into the night with Itachi and Kisame on the adjacent beds, irritated by their chatting.  
_  
Akatsuki slumber parties must be fun, _she snorted._ God, it must suck to be wanted criminals.  
_  
Feeling emboldened and even a bit refreshed, Ino wandered over to the dresser. It was morning (probably), the sun was out (maybe), birds were chirping and animals were frolicking (no creatures hiding in the dark), and the journey back to Konoha was just begging to be started.

_All I need are some kunai, maybe a few soldier pills, and something to wear that won't get me arrested for indecent exposure_, Ino assessed, wrinkling her nose at her current attire.

Fortunately the dresser wasn't empty, and Ino quickly changed into a nondescript sleeveless shirt and dark grey pants-both were too large for her, but at least the pants had drawstrings. She was especially pleased to find a pair of sandals under the dresser, because her trek back to Konoha would have been a nightmare barefooted.

Regrettably, there were no weapons in the room, so she'd have to do without. _I would have traded anything sharp and pointy for a pair of shoes, anyway. _

Now came the hard part. Leaving.

Ino stood near the door for what felt like forever. What would she do if Hidan was awake? Was he going to let her leave? Maybe he was still sleeping, and she could just sneak out.

Maybe she should come up with a plan first.

Ino knew she was procrastinating at this point, and she felt a bit sheepish. She reached out to open the door, and noted for the first time that her wrists were chaffed with angry red marks from being chained.

"Huh." They hurt a bit, and she was surprised to have only just noticed them. The physical reminder of her capture was disconcerting, and Ino began to concentrate her chakra to heal them.

Concentrating was as far as she got, though.

"What the hell?"

* * *

As soon as Ino began stomping down the hall, before even entering the foyer, she heard Hidan. It was difficult not to. The sound of metal banging against metal and cupboards creaking open indicated someone was in the kitchen making a ruckus, probably looking for something appealing to eat. Apparently the noise wasn't loud enough to drown out the angry thumping of her footsteps, because Hidan had stopped moving and was staring over his shoulder at her when she entered the room. Her indignation and a slew of demanding questions on the tip of her tongue had propelled her out of the room, but upon seeing the Akatsuki member, Ino's posture wilted and she seemed almost disappointed that he was awake.

He waited for her to speak, and when she only stood next to the couch in the foyer awkwardly, he turned away and resumed his search for food.

When she finally opened her mouth, it was to announce, "I'm going home."

Hidan snorted as he picked up a lone container of canned corn and eyed the 'use by' date distrustfully. "Don't think that's a good idea, blondie."

"I don't care."

"Do Konoha shinobi normally announce shit to their enemies? Because I'm _pretty _sure ninjas are supposed to slip into shadows and sneak off." He was mocking her again.

Ino bit her lip and frowned. Why hadn't she done that? Oh yeah.

"I don't have any weapons." And...

"Really."

"Yes, _really_."

"That's all? That's your reason?"

Ino folded her arms and diverted her gaze, choosing to glare at the cabinet above his head.

When he just continued his search for something edible that wasn't a vegetable and therefore disgusting, she nearly growled in frustration, and tried to bore a hole in the back of his head with her eyes. So he was going to play dumb, then?

"I can't access my chakra," she finally huffed out. "But of course, you already know that."

Judging from the look on his face when he turned around, apparently he hadn't. "What?"

Good thing he hadn't _really _needed to be healed last night.

"What do you mean, '_what_?" _You _did this to me. And _you _need to fix it."

"I didn't do anything to you, lady, so stop fucking accusing me of shit. Kabuto drugged you, yeah, but it should've worn off by now," Hidan said. "So what's the problem?"

She took a moment to assess herself. "I don't know. It feels... I know my chakra's there, but I can't reach it." She absently rubbed the peeling skin on her wrist. "When I tried to heal myself, I couldn't channel it. I could feel it, but it's as if something redirects it somewhere else..."

At this, Hidan looked disturbed. Ino seemed as if she wanted to say more, but her eyes were hooded and after a moment she simply closed her mouth.

He wouldn't want to hear about how the hairs on the back of her neck had stood up as she tried to channel her chakra, or how she swore she felt something watching her, just out of sight.

"Man..." Hidan rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably.

Ino was giving him a questioning glance. He had said they needed to talk, but now that she was standing there, he was at a loss for words.

It wasn't all that long ago that Kabuto had dug him out of his sorry hole in the ground, on an insubstantial lead that Hidan _might _have had something that they needed. And fortunately for Hidan, that something—that book—had indeed been in his possession (or at least, the knowledge of its location, hidden away). But things had changed for the worse since his containment. Kakazu was dead, the Akatsuki was nearly unrecognizable to him now. Those who remained clearly had no intentions of rescuing him. Well, they could go fuck themselves, as far as he was concerned. (In fact, according to Kabuto, everyone was better off dead—easier to control that way. Hidan hadn't asked him to elaborate on that.)

To top it all off, Hidan's physical condition was far from at its peak. His muscles had deteriorated substantially, atrophied from lack of use. Luckily, immortality had the apparent benefit of slowing down muscle loss, so he wasn't horribly out of shape, but his skills were rusty and he wasn't what he used to be.

Being blown up and buried alive had left him in a shaky place. At the time, his thoughts would fluctuate rapidly: he would regret his immortality, beg for death, curse Jashin for his tight grasp on life, and dread each passing hour as he sensed his vitality slowly leaving him, nutrients being drained from his body at a painfully laggard rate.

Before, he would have attributed his rescue to Jashin. And at first he had, but more and more it was seeming like luck, a fluke, a plot to tease him with the taste of freedom only to eventually snatch it from his unsuspecting grasp.

Returning to the Akatsuki was not an option. His old village, unquestionably out of the picture. With Kabuto suspiciously missing and the Jashinists from the ritual dead, Hidan was the only person left alive to deal with the aftermath. It fell on his shoulders to figure out if the ritual was successful. To figure out what had happened, and what was coming next. To prepare. On top of that, he was stuck with some dangerous baggage in the form of a traumatized young blonde woman whose appearance, for whatever reason, reminded him of Deidara.  
And if that wasn't annoying enough...

That kid, Shikamaru, was most definitely looking for her. And maybe a good portion of Konoha with him. Even if she wasn't particularly important and even if they couldn't waste the manpower, Shikamaru had a grudge. He was probably enraged that Hidan had escaped and distraught that his teammate had been kidnapped.

If he dropped Ino off, would they leave him alone? Or would they chase him down, even more resolutely, once they saw her psychological state and blocked chakra? Would they track him, thinking he had the pink-haired captive, too?  
_  
Scared, Hidan_?  
Honestly? He really was. Hell, he got tricked, blown to fucking pieces, in the prime of his life. What chance did he stand after a few months of inertia and nutritional deprivation?

It didn't matter, anyway. Whatever was going to happen, Ino was a part of it. Maybe he was wrong, but until he knew for sure...

* * *

Hidan had been strangely quiet, and if Ino were in her right mind, she would have been worried.  
Incidentally, she hadn't been in her right mind for a while.

_Why am I even still standing here, having a conversation with Hidan. Hidan! The guy who murdered Asuma-sensei in cold-blood. My chakra's all messed up, and I'm in an Akatsuki lair, of all places. Am I a prisoner? Did he plan this, does he want something from me? Or is he just hiding? Is that scared too..?_

She might as well ask. "Am I a prisoner?"

Hidan blinked, torn from his rare instance of introspection. "What do you think?"

"Can I leave?"

He thought for a moment. "No."

Ino's stance turned hostile. "Why not?" she seethed. "You can't keep me here. And why would you, anyway? What's the point? What do you want from me? Haven't you done enough?"

He groaned. _Great, this again. _"Look. I'm not taking you back to your stupid fucking village and I'm not going to let you wander off in the middle of nowhere with no chakra. You'd probably just get yourself killed and then I'd still have to deal with your obnoxiously loyal shinobi pals hunting me down. No," he seemed to be talking to himself now, "We're going to Kabuto."

"_What_?" her eyes were wide. "No." Those eyes. That room. "You can't make me."

"Yeah, I really think I can. We're not done here. Whatever happened... this isn't over, so you and I are gonna get some answers. After that, I don't give a flying fuck what happens to you."

Ino had moved to sit on the couch, and was about to respond with a scathing retort when she heard something.

Someone breathing.

Ino went rigid, her body snapping up straight, and she looked behind her. Nothing.

"Is someone else here?" she called out.

Footsteps sounded from down the hall, and Ino jumped up from the couch. "Who's there?"

Hidan crushed his head down onto the counter and buried his face in his arms in exasperation. "Fucking.. not this again. Princess, there is _nothing there_."

Ino looked at him, and then back towards the hallway. "But—you didn't hear that?"

"There's no one else here." he repeated, his voice muffled.

Ino ignored him, and started walking through the foyer towards the hall. As she did, the footsteps started up again, this time coming closer, and something in the walls creaked. She heard it exhale, low and even. She suddenly recalled the image from last night, the shadowy creature, and the breaths on her neck. Her body seized up. All she had to do was turn the corner.

"Hidan?"

"_What _now?"

She was pathetic. And he was garbage. An insane, cruel, sociopathic, murdering criminal.

"Can you check for me? Please?"

She could still hear it breathing.

Hidan gave her an incredulous look. She was sure he was going to laugh in her face, but he surprised her by rising and heading towards her. Standing still, he stared at the blonde for a second, probing, before shaking his head and turning down the corner.

"Nothing. I told you, there's nothing there."

The breathing had stopped. She took the few extra steps to look down the hall herself.

Ino started laughing then. Lightly at first, but soon she was bent over, holding her stomach, loudly guffawing.

Hidan appeared mildly horrified by the sight. _She's completely lost it. I knew it_.

She continued that way for several minutes—laughing uncontrollably, almost desperately, with Hidan staring as if she had grown a second head—before her giggling turned to sobs. Then Ino was shaking, still bent over, with tears lightly trailing down her cheeks.

_Okay then_. What the fuck was he supposed to do now?

"Crying again? Is this for real?" Hidan scoffed, trying to mask his discomfort with annoyance.

No response.

"Oh, come on." Still nothing. Hidan continued to stand there uncomfortably. _I guess riling her up isn't going to snap her out of it this time. Damn it.  
_  
"Uh.. Ino, was it?"

She didn't seem to hear him, so he grabbed her by the shoulders and maneuvered her back into the foyer, towards the couch.

"Why don't you just... uh. You look like shit. I mean-"—He might have imagined it, but she seemed to start crying harder then—"-you look tired. Why don't you just go take a nap-"—_Yes, please go be unconscious somewhere far away from me—_"-stay out here if you want to."  
He proceeded to push her down into a sitting position on the sofa, and she woodenly complied.

"I'm just gonna... go get some food. From storage. It's outside, nearby. Stock's not in the kitchen... and yeah. I'll be back, so just chill the fuck out." Hidan turned and nearly dashed out the front door.

Ino had stopped crying and was staring at the door, feeling drained and horribly exhausted. She couldn't even muster the energy to be terrified at the prospect of being alone. He wanted her to sleep it off? Fine. She could do that much, at least.

With that, Ino rested her head on the arm of the sofa. She was asleep within minutes.

* * *

Ino was woken up by loud, clunking footsteps coming from the bathroom, and the sound of a shower being turned on. Rubbing her eyes, she noticed Hidan's discarded maroon cloak piled on the coffee table in front of her. Had that been there before? She couldn't remember.

_I wonder how long I was asleep_, Ino thought. She certainly felt much better: more alert, less on edge. Less likely to have another meltdown. _Yes, no more meltdowns, please, _she prayed fervently. Maybe it was all just a byproduct of sleep deprivation? She remembered learning about that during medic training. Sleep deprivation was something commonly experienced by ninjas and often disregarded, but medics were to be on guard for the signs: impaired brain functioning, memory disturbances, tremors (that explained her shakiness, she told herself), irritability, hallucinations...

Of course, those were also signs of PTSD.

Suddenly needing a distraction from her thoughts, Ino bent forward and grabbed the cloak on the table. Was this a mandatory uniform for Jashin cultists or something? She hadn't seen Hidan wear it before, so he must have been a pretty crappy follower.

_Oooh, it has pockets on the inside. Neat. _Ino groped the cloak and pulled out something firm and rectangular. It was a book. Its cover was dark red, and it had no title. The only discernible marking was the symbol of Jashin in thick black ink. As she flipped the worn, yellow pages open, several loose pieces fell out. Many of the sheets had dog-eared corners; there was one bookmark, though, and Ino opened to it. Both pages were full of scribbles and footnotes, but her eyes were drawn to the top, where several lines had been lightly underlined and then circled for good measure:

_23 . . . . With blood and death the ritual shall reach completion, and the chosen shall be sacrificed: in the dead of night, under the circle of Jashin._  
_24 . . . .And as the offering is ripped forcefully from the womb of the Otherside, with them they shall bring Him, Jashin._  
_25 . . . .And he shall converge on the vessel._  
_26 . . . .Behold, disciples: upon the world He will descend, and bring with him death and darkness; the gates of Purgatory shall open in His presence and consume the world._

And the margins, written in loopy, elegant handwriting that Ino was certain was not Hidan's:  
_"24: Impure World Reincarnation jutsu derivative? Minor adjustments and experimentation needed."_  
**  
**Ino stops reading, her forehead creased in confusion. "What does this even mean?"

Before she has time to fully digest the material, the door to the foyer opens and Ino jumped, dropping both the cloak and book onto the floor as she scrambled to her feet.

"Stupid, paranoid motherfuckers, putting the storage shed so goddamn far from the house... Oh, you're up. That's just great." Hidan twitched and walked past her, carrying a large duffle bag that was presumably filled with food.

Hoisting the bag onto the kitchen counter, he turned the sink faucet on and Ino listened passively as the water trickle blended in seamlessly with the sound of the shower running in the background.

Wait. The shower.

Ino stilled._ If_ _he's not in the shower, then who...? _

"Hidan," she said slowly. "There's someone in the shower."

But Hidan didn't even spare her a glance. "What are you talking about? Oh, the shower's running?" He pulled out several packages of dried meat. Not the best, but they'd do. "You know, we don't have unlimited hot water here, so stop fucking wasting it."

"I told you, someone's in the shower! I didn't turn it on!" She was beginning to sound hysterical again. "Someone was walking around in there and turned on the shower and the sound woke me up!"

Just as her voice started becoming shrill, the shower stopped running. Both Hidan and Ino tensed.

"I _told _you," Ino whispered, and Hidan decided that maybe she wasn't as crazy as he thought.

When Hidan went to check the bathroom—with Ino following not so closely behind him—they found nothing. Nobody was in the shower, or in the bathroom, but there was water at the bottom of the tub and the mirror was beginning to fog from the condensation. They proceeded to check the entire safe house for any signs of intrusion and found nothing. Ino insisted that Hidan check again, two, three times until he yelled at her to stop freaking the fuck out.

They both returned to the kitchen, and Hidan was relieved that Ino hadn't started crying.

"Disgusting. Disgusting. Passable." Hidan had resumed emptying the duffel bag. Ino was watching, fascinated by the image of someone she considered to be highly dangerous and downright evil doing something as mundane as sorting through groceries.

"This is all shit. I wish I had some steak," he sighed. "I guess it doesn't matter. We'll be here a day or two tops, then we're heading to Ōzora."

"That's a lot of food for a day or two," Ino commented with distaste. "You should really watch what you eat. You'll end up just like..." she stopped, not wanting to think about her teammates and especially uncomfortable talking about them with him, of all people.

Hidan glared at her. "When you've been torn to pieces, buried underground and starved to death, _then _you can bitch at me for wanting a nice sized meal. Man. What I wouldn't give for some fresh, juicy..." He trailed off and Ino swore that his eyes started to glaze over.

This conversation was ridiculous. Ino thought back to the passage she had read in Hidan's ceremonial book. "Hidan. That ceremony."

His meat-centered daydream promptly vanished. "Yeah?"

"What was it supposed to do?"

Hidan didn't respond right away. It really wasn't any of her business, but then again..."I don't really know. Seriously, you know how religious texts get. It's all a bunch of retarded poetic bullshit." He shrugged. "Just a load of stuff about the end of the world, and the coming of Jashin and how it would bring the dawn of a new age." At that, he looked away uncomfortably.

"Why..." Ino's voice broke before she cleared it. "Why did they need two of us?"

Ah. Hidan had been waiting for this. He was surprised it took her this long to ask—even in a roundabout way—about her friend. But then again...  
Well. Maybe he wasn't _that _surprised.

Ino's gaze was downcast, and he stared at her until she looked up and caught his eye. "One was supposed to be a sacrifice."

That much was obvious.

"And the other was meant to be a vessel for Jashin."

* * *

"Are we there yet?"

"No," Itsuki said, pulling the brim of his sun hat a little more firmly over his head. It really was hot outside.

A few minutes later, and the younger man walking alongside the wagon spoke again.

"Are we _almost _there yet?"

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-seven, last I checked."

"That's horrifying. And, Akira? This is the last time I'm letting you accompany me on a delivery."

Akira sighed. "That was far. Really, really far. I don't know how you do it," he complained. "I think I'll stick with managing the storefront from now on."

"You do that," Itsuki agreed.

"Hey, I think I see someone up ahead, a bit off the road."

"Eh?" Itsuki squinted his eyes and looked into the distance. "You know I can't see very well without my glasses."

"Well, you should have brought them, then."

Akira ran off the path and called out, "Hey, you! Miss! Hello!"

When he got a bit closer, Akira was startled by her appearance. She hadn't seemed to hear him at first, and was meandering slowly through the brush, looking lost. Her face was smeared with what looked like dried blood (but he couldn't be sure) and she was covered in a large, dark red cloak.

As soon as he reached her, he immediately asked if she was alright. "Where are you from? Are you okay, do you need medical attention?"

By this time, Itsuki had stopped the wagon and had almost reached them on foot. The older man saw the blood on her face and said, "It looks like she might have hit her head. Does she seem disoriented to you?"

Akira only shrugged, and turned back towards the wanderer. "What's your name?"

The woman finally looked at him. "Sakura," she said. "Where am I?"

"Near Ōzora, in River Country. We're on our way there now, actually. Would you like to come with us?" Itsuki offered. "You don't look so well. It's not that far, and we've got a good hospital."

Sakura seemed to consider this for a moment before nodding. Akira took her hand and the two men led her back to the wagon.

"That's an interesting hair color," he commented. "Is it hereditary?"

"Yes," she said simply.

"I see. I like it. It matches your eyes," he smiled. "And it's almost the same color as your cloak. Fancy that!"

He hadn't been entirely telling the truth. To him, it looked a little too much like the color of blood.


End file.
